Five steps to productivity heaven

Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) and its effect on wellbeing and productivity

For the last three years we have researched how Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) affects worker productivity, absenteeism and staff turnover.

The evidence is clear that temperature, humidity, light, space, noise, CO2 and VOCs (among other factors) have a huge effect on people’s motivation, cognitive capability, productivity and wellbeing.

Many studies show us what the optimal levels are. For instance, The World Green Building Council’s Health, Wellbeing and Productivity in Offices report quantifies the effect of light, ventilation and outdoor views on productivity, finding that staff experience:

a 23% increase in productivity from better lighting

an 11% increase in productivity from better ventilation

a 10 to 25% improvement in mental functioning when they have views to outside.

When we applied these metrics to UK workplaces, we found a profusion of office environments that fell well short of optimum levels for human performance.

Five steps to productivity heaven

Armed with this evidence, we created a straightforward five step process that enables companies to measure and improve the working environment for their people.

It should also help teams traditionally driven by cost, to expand their focus into raising performance and standards. For estates teams already working with a performance focus, it will help align activity to the wider business goals and increase recognition and reputation for your contribution.

Step 1: Engage stakeholders

Meet with representatives from finance, IT and senior management to set out the benefits, then plan and agree the approach.

Talk with your stakeholders to build your understanding of the key drivers of productivity within your business. This will help you to engage appropriately with the relevant internal stakeholders and get their support when you come back to them with proposed measures.

Step 2: Collect data

Collect data to provide insight into your building performance including indoor environmental quality, usage profiles and feedback from staff and management.

The quality of data collected underpins the building performance approach and will have a strong bearing on the quality of subsequent outcomes. By making full use of existing data where possible, you will minimise additional information and work required. You will need information on:

1. People – insights from building users

2. Place – performance of the building

3. Performance – measures of the company performance against agreed metrics

The previous step has the potential to generate a lot of data, and the first challenge is to make sense of it all. The following approach will help you do this:

1. Undertake a high-level review of the data collected to check the quality of the information and get an idea of what areas are likely to be of most value – for example, anything that is very different to what you would expect to see.

2. Analyse in more detail areas that look to be poor performers. For example, if a particular indoor environmental quality metric is much higher or lower than expected analyse the data for patterns and confirm the data is accurate.

3. Focus on the big issues which are impacting your workplace. What is likely to improve your internal environmental quality?

Step 4: Run Projects

Deliver projects, engage with staff and communicate with your stakeholders.

Once you are ready to deliver the projects you planned, your choice of running the projects concurrently or phased is likely to be influenced by a number of external factors. We recommend splitting projects into:

LCMB Building Performance Ltd. (LCMB) improves the financial and environmental sustainability of buildings and estates, and the productivity and well-being of the people using them. We do this by reducing building operating costs, energy used and improving workplace environments and building space utilisation. We offer Facilities Management, Carbon and energy reduction and project management support.